Broken Bones and Burning Bonds (YASASHI & YUUTO) (TOURNEY)

It had nearly been a year since they first met. Since that day in the rain; when Yasashi had faced Yuuto in a sanctioned duel. When the two of them had pitted against one another to test not only their powers, but their convictions. Yet at that that time, Yasashi had been a coward. He'd run from his quirk, hidden it, pretended to be something he was not. He fought with every ounce of strength he had and still he came up short. Because he had not embraced who he was. Yuuto, for all his faults, knew who he was from the very beginning. He had a strength of identity and character that Yasashi hadn't been able to measure up to. He was brash, harsh, rude, and had more pride than most heroes fairly should. Yet... Yuuto believed in doing the right thing, even if he had to 'break a few eggs' as he called it. He did not quake in the face of danger, he embraced it.

Whatever they were, friends, enemies, rivals, Yasashi respected him.

He respected him enough to wait. So that he, the crowds around them be damned. Yuuto would be the first one to see what he'd been working on for so long. What he'd perfected under the careful guidance and proud gaze of Red Horn. What he'd forged in the fires of his mothers ruthless tutelage. What he'd built from nothing in just a few short months. He'd sworn on the rooftop that day that the would give it everything he had. Now was the time to make good on that.

Yasashi sat in the locker room, his eyes shut, they'd been separated and put into solitary rooms for the wait before their match. The massive young man clasped his fingers together tightly, his lips forming a thin line. Blue flames flickered from his upper lip and eyebrows. Bits of blue flame trickled out from between his eyelids. He clenched his fingers a bit tighter, knuckles going white, as a cheer rose up in the stadium. He set his jaw and got to his feet. Blood flushing through his veins; his mighty lungs full. He was ready this time. Every inch of him trembled with the anticipation. Yuuto was going to give it his all, and Yasashi was not going to disappoint this time.

He turned, looking at the door. His blonde hair had grown a bit long, hanging down to the back of his neck. It was pulled back tight, and framed his dark skin well. His eyes open, the flames fading from them and revealing those eerily glowing ice-blue orbs in his head. His uniform was simpler, form fitting and tight to allow for flexibility and a clean surface to use his quirk on. A faint glow permeated the uniform along a path that looked eerily like his bone structure. He took another deep breath, and the intercom chimed above his head.

He reached to his hip and pulled off the bone mask. Pale white and sized just to fit over his face. He tilted it over, looking at the inside. He remembered getting thrashed by Sunaho and took another deep breath. He'd never lose that badly again. He swore it. He strode out the door. In that moment he visualized Kuro watching the television in his room. He could imagine his sister in the stands, his father with her. He wondered what his father would think to see this quirk. He imagined Shouko freaking out over the big reveal. He could see Honey staring in mute shock. All of his friends. Every thought swirled in his head until it became a fresh blaze of motivation.

Yasashi saw the light beginning to flood into the hallway a moment later, a roar was already filling the stadium and it sounded like whatever music Yuuto intended to draw attention to himself had certainly worked to draw up the crowd. A small drone descended, its camera turning once, then twice, to adjust to the lighting. A number appeared next to it, counting down from five. He took one last deep breath, setting his face in one of determination, his eyes blazing and his shoulders squared. His classmates knew him as a goofball, as a warm-hearted fool who loved hard and laughed loud. Yet here. Before this audience. He was going to be someone else.

"...and his opponent! One of the First of his Kind! A future Second-Generation Pro Hero! Son of the Chivalrous Hero, Aquitaine! He would like to be introduced by his chosen hero name!"

The light turned red next to the camera and Yasashi grabbed the mask. His eyes, though, were fixed on Yuuto. Even from there he could see the whites of his opponent's eyes and knew that Yuuto could see his own. Yasashi flicked the mask up into the air with a twist of his wrist, it spun once, catching the sun's glint on it. He caught it, turned it, and placed it on his face.

The roar of the crowd stilled for a moment as blue flame erupted around his body, coiling around every feature of him and creating a small trail as he continued to walk toward the stage. When he took that first step though, the flames began to disperse. His body was encased in bone from head to toe, plates of nigh-metallic bone formed a suit of armor that covered every inch of him. The skull mask was still present, but it had melded into the rest of his armor, forming a helm that left black holes where his eyes were, only beady blue lights burned inside. Blue flames rose from the joints in his armor, licking the air here and there and creating a terrifying look.

Yasashi kept moving forward, utterly silent, his blazing eyes fixed on Yuuto.

You wanted to see? Here I am! He thought.

"TARTARUS!" The announcer cried to a thundrous roar from the crowd.

He stopped in front of Yuuto, looking down at him. "I'm Ready."

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